Where You Buy Wine Makes a Difference

A few weeks ago, Norma brought home a couple of bottles of Famille Perrin Côtes du Rhône Village Rouge 2012. She bought them at our local Costco (Mountain View, CA). We opened one and, frankly, the flavor of acetic acid was unmistakable. Meaning the wine had not been handled properly.

Looking at the label, we realized we had bought the same wine a few weeks earlier atArtisan Wine Depot. We had attended one of their tastings comparing Rhône varietals with GSM’s from Tablas Creek. In fact we reviewed it. And we liked it enough to bring home two bottles. We had one left which we proceeded to open. It was just as delicious as we remembered.

Where you buy wine makes a difference. Many years ago we spent a long weekend in Florida. The only wine shop in the area had hours that didn’t allow us to visit it. We bought wine at a couple of nearby supermarkets. Wines that we know and like were vinegar.

The moral: support your local wine shop. And, if you buy a bottle at a big-box store and you don’t like it, that may not be the winery’s fault.